Hell Freezes Over: Users Now Want the Start Screen in...

Wynona said:

Lady Fitzgerald said:

You should see th glasses I wear; six lenses (trifocals). All seriousness aside, I hear you. I have a pair of readers I use just for working on the computer at home.

Every time I get my glasses changed, Lady Fitzgerald, I have a pair for everyday wear (bifocals), a pair of readers for everyday reading (can't stand reading with the bifocals) and a pair of computer glasses (don't like looking up through the bottom of the bifocals)... :)

When trying to use my computer at home while wearing my trifocals, I have to angle my head up and keep switching between the middle and bottom lenses and wind up quickly getting one seriously sore neck! I use a cheap pair of drugstore readers for when working at my computer that are a compromise between my trifocal's mid-rage lenses and the reading lenses.

If I try to watch TV while laying in bed, the reading lenses in my trifocals are the only ones I can see the TV through, which does not work at all sense I need the long ranged lenses. If I push the trifocals down my nose so I can see through the correct lenses, I'm then watching TV through a couple of small windows; 'tis very annoying. So, I got another pair of el cheapo drug store readers to watch TV through.

Wynona said:

...Now, if we could just get monitors that are specifically for our particular vision problems, I would be very happy. :)

Sounds good but I would hate to replace three very expensive monitors every time my prescription changed. Even better would monitors that were adjustable for our particular vision problems. Now, that would be sweet.

I'm keeping the Start Screen and will keep the Start Screen in all provisioned deployments I'll do for 10. If anyone has been toying around with the new Start Screen, it's basically a mosh of Start menu and Start Screen with bits of Windows 8 and Windows Phone together with 7's menu all in one screen. The early early concept of it is in one of the builds. Basically, All Apps is together with the rest of the Start Screen in one same view, but All Apps is more of the Windows Phone style. It's overall nicer looking I find and more versatile.

But to each their own. Some like drop down menus, some like more useful Ribbons and versatility.

I love ribbons. I can go from product to product and I am never discombobulated.. And it's an old trick - if there is something you don't see, you right click somewhere on the top. LOL

lehnerus2000 said:

Coke Robot said:

Some like drop down menus, some like more useful Ribbons and versatility.

"More useful Ribbons" like the Context Ribbons that cannot be seen at all, until you click in a specific location in a document/file?
Worse, there is no indication that the options even exist, so you can't even look them up.

At least with drop-down menus you can see what options are available, even if you can't access them.
Knowing the options exist means you can actually look up how to access them.

The only Ribbons I find helpful are in Excel.

IMO, it's still debatable whether or not they are superior to the toolbars in Excel 2003.
Two custom toolbars were enough to hold every common function and there was enough space for a handful of more esoteric ones.

Note:
I'm talking about the Office 2007 Ribbons.
I haven't had access and/or time to play with the newer versions, which are supposedly improved.

The Ribbons in Windows 8, Office 2010 and 2013 show every single command available depending on what context the file or object contains.

I think it is pretty clear what the tabs and symbols mean. Example Word.



And it very similar in e.g. PowerPoint.

lehnerus2000 said:

I'm not sure what you mean.

Here is a screenshot from Office 2010.

Coke Robot said:

The Ribbons in Windows 8, Office 2010 and 2013 show every single command available depending on what context the file or object contains.

That is why I said "Context Ribbons".

Where is the:

• Table Ribbon if you don't click in a table?
• Header & Footer Ribbon is if you don't click in the header or footer?

I wouldn't be surprised to find out that there a dozens of Ribbons I've never seen, because I haven't clicked at the right time.

It also seems that the commands I'm interested in, are hidden under the little squiggle button in each section.

I realise that I'm in the minority with my opinions about the Ribbon.
It is mysteriously loved by lots of people (just like Chrome).

Funny, I love the ribbon and hate Chrome. Go figure.

lehnerus2000 said:

I'm not sure what you mean.

Here is a screenshot from Office 2010.

Coke Robot said:

The Ribbons in Windows 8, Office 2010 and 2013 show every single command available depending on what context the file or object contains.

That is why I said "Context Ribbons".

Where is the:

• Table Ribbon if you don't click in a table?
• Header & Footer Ribbon is if you don't click in the header or footer?

I wouldn't be surprised to find out that there a dozens of Ribbons I've never seen, because I haven't clicked at the right time.

It also seems that the commands I'm interested in, are hidden under the little squiggle button in each section.

I realise that I'm in the minority with my opinions about the Ribbon.
It is mysteriously loved by lots of people (just like Chrome).

That's been a nonissue for me and lot of people since at least 2009. You don't need the Table editing or Header editing tools when you haven't selected them. I haven't used Office 2003 for many many years but when I did have to use it past 2007, that was frustrating as it seemed commands were hidden and tucked away. That is the entire point of the Ribbon to take those bajillion commands and put them at the forefront and the ones that are context enabled only show up with those objects selected. Why have a Table editing ribbon showing at the same time when you haven't even inserted a table? It would make the Ribbon have too many tabs that aren't even usable. The more advanced commands are much more easily accessible by hitting the little expand arrow in each box, again advanced commands aren't used frequently enough to merit the need for them to be showing and present all the time.

There are about maybe half a dozen context tabs in Office, maybe a bit more because of PowerPoint and Excel.

But either way, this is debating which side of the bread slice is best to butter. The drop down menu based UI of Office was dreadful and required going through each and every menu entry to see where the command you needed was under. The Ribbon UI took all those commands and put them front and center, but kept the non-frequently used or context based tabs out of the spotlight only when needed. Actually, there is a better side of the bread slice here...